Calls for Resignation Over "Jo Su-jin Trampling on the Dignity of Victimized Children and a Family"

"Cannot Be Considered Unfilial Behavior" Criticism
Jeong Gwang-jae "A Symbol of Hypocrisy in Personnel"

On the 21st, the People Power Party urged Jo Su-jin, the Democratic Party candidate for Gangbuk District in Seoul, to withdraw her candidacy. They took issue with Jo's past defense of a child sex offender case, in which she claimed to have been harmed by the victim's father.

The People Power Party Central Women's Committee issued a statement that day, saying, "Jo's past misdeeds are coming to light," and criticized, "It is a disgraceful act that trampled not only the dignity of the victim child, who was only in the 4th grade of elementary school, but also an entire family."

On the 20th, at the launch ceremony of the Democratic Party of Korea Seoul Metropolitan Election Countermeasures Committee held at the National Assembly, Representative Lee Jae-myung is taking a commemorative photo with candidates Ryu Sam-young and Jo Su-jin. 2024.3.20
[Photo by Yonhap News]

They also said, "While defending a gang rape case, she claimed diminished mental capacity and that the crime was committed alone, and in another sex crime case, she argued about the 'victim's demeanor.' If she had reflected her conscience on the word 'human rights,' which she habitually used, she would never have made such claims."

Jo Su-jin is a former member of the Minbyun (Lawyers for a Democratic Society) Civil Economy Committee and served as Minbyun's Secretary-General. She currently serves as a director of the People’s Livelihood Foundation (Saram Saneun Sesang Roh Moo-hyun Foundation). According to a media report, among the cases Jo handled was one in which a 4th-grade elementary school girl was sexually assaulted and contracted a sexually transmitted disease; Jo suggested the possibility that the infection occurred through other sexual contacts and claimed it could have been harm caused by the victim's father.

The Women's Committee stated, "Jo does not even have the qualification to utter the phrase 'public servant of the people,'" and demanded her resignation, saying, "Even if she now sheds crocodile tears, the disgraceful and outrageous remarks she has sown cannot be taken back."

Jung Kwang-jae, spokesperson for the Central Election Committee's Public Relations Team, also criticized in a statement that day, "Despite having a background as Minbyun Secretary-General, Jo Su-jin is a symbol of duplicity who has defended numerous sex offenders."